Tuesday, February 10, 2004

WFRP Update 2

The sun slowly rose, mimicking the slow awakening of the heroes on board the boat. The wounds from the previous night had started to become a painful distant memory. As they started moving about the boat, Joseph appeared and dispensed his recently acquired news. The two nobles who had been causing all the problems last night had been found beaten during the night.While normally a cause for celebration, the fact that one of them had died from his injuries and that they guards were looking for a group of people whose description matched that of the heroes was cause for alarm. The heroes made the journey out of the city below decks, away from prying eyes. Joseph decided to take the safer passage through the canals and it was just after the first lock house that the first hint of trouble started to show. Elpham had noticed a group of road wardens approaching along the river bank. The heroes took to their various hiding spots, although there seemed little cause for such actions. The wardens passed along a warning about raiders that were attacking boats along the canals. A few stops at local river inns were the only other excitement that happened during the 3 day journey to the docks of Weissbruck.

As the barge pulled into Weissbruck for an evening rest, the heroes noticed a gruff looking man in a large cloak watching them intently. He seems very familiar, almost as if they had meet him just days before. Then they remember; he was the person that the two followers had met with back in Altdorf. Could he have been the person that killed those two in the alley? The heroes follow him through the streets, but lose him amoung the throngs of people as he steps into the 'Black Gold' Inn. After a brief rest, Rudolpho manages to gather some information on the mysterious cloaked man. He had been seen heading to the 'smiling man' inn. Max is sent ahead to scout out the inn, while Rudolpho prepares a now familiar disguise. The river journey had given him time to perfect his Britonian noble persona and he now dons that disguise.

Meanwhile, max has spotted the cloaked man, talking with 3 dockworkers; the kind of people that will do near anything for the proper price. The dockworkers leave and soon afterwards Elpham and Magdelaine enter. The cloaked man immediately spots them and moves to leave the inn. He spots Rudolpho and sees through his disguise. The cloaked man flees and is quickly lost in the nearby alleys. A few well placed coins divulge that he is staying at the third inn, the 'trumpet inn'. The heroes regroup at the barge to come up with a plan on how to capture and interrogate the cloaked man. Joseph and the other crew have left for some midnight drinking, leaving the heroes to continue their discussions. Magdelaine insists that she has a wonderful plan that somehow involves snacks and walks off the barge to gather some information. Max is distracted by the mention of food and sulks on board when he learns that there are no snacks.

As the heroes await the return of Magdelaine and the snacks the silent night is split by the sound of a streaking crossbow bolt and someone yelling 'charge! take them!'. The cloaked man is firing a crossbow at Rudolpho while his three flunkies charge the barge. Elpham charges out to meet the dockworkers while Max moves along the ship to get a line of sight on the cloaked man. Rudolphos' luck turns sour as he is dropped to the deck by a pair of well placed crossbow bolts. He barely had time to return fire before the fight was knocked out of him. Elpham has engaged the three dockworkers and quickly proved why dwarfs are feared as warriors. Two of the workers flee for their lives while the last falls to Elphams hammer blows. He then tries to get behind the cloaked man. Meanwhile, Max has been easily dodging the cloaked man's bolts, and has managed to get in a pair of excellent hits of his own. As the cloaked man notices Elpham moving towards him he steps behind a building and readies his sword. Max jumps off of the boat and rushes into the melee. The melee rages on for what seems like forever. Elpham is struck many a time, but his fierce will keeps him from falling. Eventually the cloaked man succumbs to the superior numbers and falls to the ground. Max attempts to keep the man from dying, but to no avail. A quick search nets them a few coins, some armor and a letter. The bodies are disposed of before Magdelaine comes back. As she slowly reads the letter it is revealed that the cloaked man was a bounty hunter who had been chasing Rudolpho's twin for many many leagues. The note was signed by a Q.F. It seems that having Rudolpho installed at the Baron Liebshire will not be as easy a task as first imagined.

At first sun rise, Max and Magdelaine, being the only ones capable of moving, head off to the Trumpet inn. A small bribe later they are standing in the cloaked man's room. The only item of interest is his saddle bags, which contain only a change of cloths. On their way back to the boat they enlist the services of a barber surgeon who manages to stitch Elpham and Rudolpho back together for a small fee. As the barber leaves, Joseph casts off and the heroes head off down the river. It is another 4 days to Boggenhaufem. Who knows what trials the river holds for our heroes?